Masdar City & City Centre, Abu Dhabi: The Blueprint for Future Sustainable Cities

Masdar city, spread over 6 million square metres in the desert at 17 km from Abu Dhabi, is probably the world’s most prestigious project presently that focuses on sustainable development and energy efficiency. Aiming at a zero-carbon and zero-waste functional design, the Masdar City project has the Abu Dhabi government’s long term commitment to develop and consequently deploy newer green technologies to fulfil this aim. To be built in seven phases spread over seven years at an investment of more than 20 billion USD, Masdar City aims to provide a blueprint for all future sustainable cities in the world. As a world first, the electricity required for the construction of the Masdar Headquarters building is being generated by photovoltaic panels mounted on the roof, which has been constructed ahead of the rest of the building for this purpose.

To be built along the lines of ancient walled cities, Masdar will be connected by an existing road network, bolstered by new public transit and rail routes, to Abu Dhabi international airport and Abu Dhabi city centre. Planned to be car-free and pedestrian friendly, it’s compact road and street network ensures maximum distance of 200 metres to the nearest public transport for any pedestrian. Additionally, and most fantastically, a personal rapid transport system in the form of transport pods will complement the scheme, transporting individuals across this futuristic fantasy land! Thus, traditionally tested ideas of ideal civilizational settlements like community interactions and unhindered pedestrian links are being encouraged here with the help of the latest technological developments integrated with green tools and solutions.

And, this futuristic fantasy-turning-into-reality urban conglomerate is to have a suitably worthy heart in the form of the Masdar City Centre being designed by LAVA, a research and network based design firm having offices in Sydney, Shanghai, Stuttgart, Berlin, and now Abu Dhabi as well. With a vision to achieve ‘more with less’ (more architecture with less material/ energy/ time/ cost), LAVA strives to merge future technologies with the patterns of organisation found in nature to build a smarter, friendlier, more socially and environmentally responsible future. Little wonder then, they came up with the winning design proposal for the social epicentre of the future-ready Masdar City.

Marrying the idea of the oasis being the centre of life in a desert to the one of square, plaza or forum being the social centre of life in the classical western cities, Masdar City Centre has been conceptualised as an interactive public plaza surrounded by social, commercial and recreational facilities. In terms of functioning and the technologies employed to achieve it, this City Centre has been visualised as a path-breaking beacon showing the way for ideal future cities, an ‘oasis of the future’.

The centre will include an open air plaza surrounded by a five star hotel and other hotels, convention centre, recreational and retail facilities and remain open for public use 24 x 7. This plaza will be shaded during day by a field of open giant sunflower umbrellas, which will simultaneously collect and store heat, and fold up during night to release the stored solar energy to light up the premises. These umbrellas, providing sun-shade by following the sun’s projections, are a prototype that can be replicated anywhere in the world and open up opportunities for outdoor living according to LAVA principals Chris Bosse, Tobias Wallisser and Alexander Rieck.

The shapes of buildings at the Masdar City Centre have been inspired by natural forms that occur due to erosion in sandy desert regions, canyons or wadis. LAVA’s winning proposal includes a veritable list of innovative energy conserving, sustenance promoting tools like interactive, heat sensitive technology to activate lighting in response to pedestrian movement. The angles of wall facades are programmed to alter themselves so as to optimise solar glare; while walls will have surface finishes embedded with minimal energy that will respond to changing temperatures.

Thus packing a world of innovative sustainable, energy conserving tools and a nature-inspired design to boot, backed by the UAE government’s commitment, the Masdar City Centre is poised for take-off. The Sydney/Dubai based Kann Finch group, engineering firm Arup, Transsolar (the world’s leading energy consultancy firm), and a team of international experts is collaborating with LAVA to functionally realise the world-class innovative landmark of sustainable architecture and engineering design that it is intended to be.